Competition
by ancientGonzoWisdom
Summary: This is the not so important side story of Sasuke's quest to kill Itachi, as well as the shinobi trying to beat him to that target. Possible SasukeOC later on. I haven't decided yet.


Nope, don't own Naruto.

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Sasuke was walking about the eastern hideout grounds scanning the area for his beloved fishing pole (he hardly needed to fish, but it was still nice to do when he didn't feel like training, defying Orochimaru, or sleeping) when he heard a very nerve-wrackingly annoying voice (he could've sworn it cracked a bit) call out:

"I finally found you! Now...it's time for you to disappear."

Resisting the temptation to roll his eyes, Sasuke turned around and saw a very short, obnoxious-looking shinobi clad in a brown robe and baggy pants, fishnet, and a red scarf and mask. He wasn't nearly as fixated on this person's attire, however, as he was on those hanging lower eyelashes that put Rock Lee to shame. Not exactly a sight for sore eyes, overall.

"Is that so?" he asked mockingly.

A loud growl preceded clenching fists and eyes bulging comically in anger. "Of course it's so, dumbass!" the increasingly annoying shinobi shouted.

"Who are you?" he asked calmly, not even bothering to put a hand on his sword or get into any sort of defensive stance. This ninja's chakra was pretty much nil.

"I'm glad you asked!" the Waterfall ninja looked to be smiling (or perhaps smirking) underneath the mask. "My name," the shinobi pointed an accusing finger at the Uchiha, "...is Hanehara Daigoro. And if you really must know, Uchiha cur, our clans have been feuding for ages. Seeing as I'm the only one left of my clan, I've made it my life's work to snuff out the last of you murderous fuckers."

What a mess, Sasuke thought, but he decided to go for a little more callous approach. "Are you done ranting?" He glared at the ninja for good measure. "I have more important things to do than listen to your nonsense." He looked around for a moment to see if his fishing pole was anywhere nearby, but to no avail.

Apparently, that made the Waterfall ninja snap like a brittle twig and charge at him, shouting, "You're not going anywhere!"

He had to admit, this guy was fast...

...But he wasn't good enough to catch him off guard.

All it took was a hand on the assailant's forehead to stop him. "Go away," he began coldly, "You don't stand a chance." Another growl broke the silence that followed, and Sasuke couldn't help but sigh and roll his eyes. "You know, I'm actually saving your pathetic life by not fighting you." This person was really getting on his nerves now.

And with a hand sign and a puff of smoke, it seemed that Daigoro was gone. He could tell this guy wasn't a skilled ninjutsu user from the sloppiness of the kata for the teleportation jutsu. Well, Orochimaru's successor thought, that was a total waste of time.

It seemed that this time, however, he was actually caught off guard by the Waterfall shinobi, who had jumped out from behind him and kicked him square in the back of the head. They both fell to the ground and rolled once or twice, and the bastard managed to unsheath his sword during the process. Damn, when did things turn around so suddenly?

Ah, well. All it'll take is an application of lightning chakra to the throat and this guy'll be writhing in pain and gasping for breath, right?

Not quite.

This shinobi seemed to have some high pain tolerance, because he managed to stay in his seiza-esque position atop Sasuke, pointing his own sword so the tip of blade was mere centimeters from his forehead. The only reason a deathblow hadn't been attempted yet was because his chakra was numbing the other fighter's body.

Somewhere along the line, Sasuke's hand slipped and the obnoxious red cloth covering the waterfall shinobi's face fell down, revealing the rather unattractive face of a tan-skinned girl with freckles spreading like a plague along her cheeks and nose. He could tell she wasn't exactly having an easy time breathing; she looked like she was ready to pass out. But, in those black eyes, there was hate, rage, and disappointment (probably because she'd been caught so quickly). He relaxed his grip on her throat slowly, eventually pushing her off of him and standing up, taking his sword back.

"W-what're you doing ...?" she asked between coughs and gasps for air.

Brushing the dirt off of his clothes, Sasuke replied calmly, " Look, Daigoro, or whatever the hell you said your name was," the expression of absolute loathing she'd developed right then made him want to smirk, "I don't have the time for this now, but..."

With hate in his heart and determination in his voice, he finished, "We'll settle this after I kill Uchiha Itachi."

She smirked at that, and he wondered what was so amusing all of a sudden.

"Not if I get to him first," she said. "I've got some unfinished business with that asshole."

With a grin and another hand sign, she was gone. He was rather glad, really.

Now, where did he put that fishing pole...?


End file.
